If you have a problem with VDPAU and/or MPlayer/VDPAU, PLEASE read this first

[Stephen Warren]

The 180.11 Linux driver release (and later) includes some extra debug features. If you have a problem running an application using VDPAU, please run the following commands, then run the failing command again, and post the results:

# If you use bash:
export VDPAU_TRACE=1
export VDPAU_NVIDIA_DEBUG=3

# If you use csh:
setenv VDPAU_TRACE 1
setenv VDPAU_NVIDIA_DEBUG 3

Please also generate and post an "nvidia bug report" by running nvidia-bug-report.sh as root.

Please upload a copy of the media file you were playing. Even a short portion of the clip (e.g. truncated to include the first 5 seconds) should be enough for us to diagnose initialization problems at least. We now accept files using the NVIDIA file drop:

* sftp to partners.ftp.nvidia.com (note: scp will not work; use interactive sftp)

cd /path/to/your/local/file
sftp vdpau@partners.ftp.nvidia.com
...
vdpau@partners.ftp.nvidia.com's password:     [press enter/return]
...
sftp> put the_filename.ext
sftp> exit

The user ID is vdpau with no password (i.e. empty/blank). Simply upload files to whatever directory the system places you into. You will be able to upload files, and possibly list files, but not download files. Please let us know if you have any difficulties using this system.

If you're having problems with MPlayer, please try using the built-in software codecs, and see if the file plays correctly. To do this, use the same MPlayer command-line, but substitute the -vc parameter as follows:

ffmpeg12vdpau -> ffmpeg12
ffh264vdpau -> ffh264
ffwmv3vdpau -> ffwmv3
ffvc1vdpau -> ffvc1

e.g.:

# HW accelerated:
./mplayer -vo vdpau -vc ffmpeg12vdpau file.mpg

# SW decoding:
./mplayer -vo vdpau -vc ffmpeg12 file.mpg

Some MPlayer problems may be solved by using a different demuxer; specify "-demuxer lavf" on the command-line.